Cleaning articles including disposable cleaning articles are well known in the art. Typically, such articles are used to clean household items such as plates, pots and the like. One such example is disclosed in Steinhardt (U.S. Pat. No. 2,037,944) which is directed to the employment of abrasive material (e.g. steel wool) and to a holder which may be placed over the steel wool to prevent contact of the user's hands with the steel wool.
Perez (U.S. Pat. No. 4,121,386) discloses a manual surface treating device in the form of a disposable sandpaper device which has a handle that is formed from the cardboard base having the sand paper attached thereto.
Woods et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,230,119) discloses a multilayer laminated pad suitable for the application or removal of liquids which employs a handle attached to a base to shield the user's hand from the cleaning material. A similar device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,771,524 describing a multilayer disposable pad for use as wipes or applicators employing an absorbent base pad, an impervious barrier layer attached to the base pad and a flexible handle.
Denton (U.S. Pat. No. 5,802,655) discloses a kit containing a washer washing cleaner liquid and one or more paper towels can be used for cleaning a substrate. The cleaner wiper package includes a pocket structure in which a cleaner liquid is contained within the pocket structure in which the pocket structure includes an imperforate wall having at least one towel located thereon wherein the towel can be unfolded to wipe cleaner liquid and entrained dirt off the work surface.
Koptis (U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,264) discloses a small size shallow pouch like container for dispensing an ingredient including outwardly pivotable flaps to form a package applicator.
Zygmont (U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,515) discloses an applicator pad with a handle which includes a folded over section for forming the handle. While all of these cleaning articles provide a useful purpose, there is a need in the art to provide a flexible, sheet like cleaning article which can absorb water and other liquids and at the same time have an abrasive or scouring function making the cleaning article suitable for cleaning tough to clean objects such as pots and pans having food caked thereon.
It would be a further advance in the art if such a cleaning article could preferably be designed in a manner in which the consumer can readily grip the cleaning article and have an instantly formed handle providing a gripping surface whenever the cleaning article is used.